Review on NEM by Benaiah A. Akinlade
NEM: A FASCINATING ECOSYSTEM WITH A FEW VALID CONCERNS TO BE CLEARED
Blockchain services in the crypto space usually parade similar or same features with one or two extra or slightly different feature. These new blockchain service providers are also almost founded on the principles of existing and well established and widely adopted blockchains.
NEM is a P2P crypto and blockchain platform that is molded in the image of the well-established Ethereum blockchain. It provides similar services to that of the Ethereum blockchain with the introduction of a distinct feature known as Proof of Importance (POI) protocol which is also similar to Proof of Stake (POS). As a user, you are qualified for being selected for POI if you hodl a minimum of 10,000 XEM. It is noteworthy the XEM is the native token of the NEM ecosystem which can be used for paying for services in the public blockchain. As at the time of this review, the price of one XEM coin is USD 0.582858 with a total of 9,000,000,000 XEM coins in circulating supply.
NEM ecosystem is community driven where members are allowed to be involved in the decision-making process of developing the blockchain and the services it provides. The NEM ecosystem does not adopt the typical token mining process which is synonymous with a wide variety of blockchains. The technique is known as “HARVESTING” which makes creation of new coins easier and faster as the nodes do not need to complete the clock cycle before new coins are created. This in effect reduces the amount of power consumed by the machines in generating new blocks in record time. It also doesn’t require specialized machines for the harvesting process. There has been impressive news from the NEM ecosystem in recent times. One of such news is the announcement of the Symbol Launch date which is slated to be held on March 15, 2021.
As much as the NEM ecosystem portrays a lot of impressive features, it is noteworthy to consider some of the complaints leveled against the organization. My advice to all investors haven’t changed: “TRADE RESPONSIBLY” .
Pros
- NEM is faster than Bitcoin as it can process 1,000 transactions in a second.
- NEM is capable of building a payment processor which are similar to that of popular payment platforms
- You can easily interact with other blockchains from the NEM interface without needing to leave the NEM blockchain.
- NEM source code is original i.e it was built from scratch.
- There is no need to mine XEM, you rather harvest the token, which is faster and more efficient
- NEM does not need too much energy to maintain its P2P network because a node can run on a PC with less than 5 Watts power consumption.
- There is a multi-signature feature which ensures that the smart contracts on the blockchain and do not need a third-party application.
Cons
- The POI system cannot be vouched for yet as it has not been well used and tested to fully know its functionality
- The security lapses of the NEM ecosystem in 2018 which led to the loss of 523,000,000 XEM tokens is a reason to be weary of this new ecosystem. The lost tokens were nor the instigators were never recovered nor discovered respectively.
- The bankruptcy case of 2019 of the NEM foundation led to the unfair dismissal of staff of the organization. It was later suspected that the top-level employees of the company might have enriched themselves at the detriment of investors and staff members.
- The cases of misappropriation by the company proves that POI can be easily manipulated for selfish reasons.
